Drove 2 Miatae Yesterday

"Jayhawk Jake" (jayhawkjake)
08/26/2018 at 08:51 • Filed to: None

Both 2018s, one an RF one not. Thoughts after the jump.

The ND is a great little car. The fit and finish at least give off a great initial impression, and most everything about driving it feels nice and fun. The steering is pleasantly light, though maybe a little too light for a sports car. The clutch and transmission are honestly the best I’ve ever used. Shifts are snick-snick precise and an absolute blast to row through.

So RF or Soft Boi? After driving both I honestly think the RF is just a gimmick. While the car looks great from the front quarter and side profile with the top up, the back is just silly. It’s not a fastback, it’s pretending to be one and looks silly. When the top is down, you’re left with a huge crossbar and the two buttresses, which makes it feel more like having a sunroof open than a convertible.

Wind noise with the top up seemed exactly the same between the two cars. If the RF was quieter it wasn’t enough because it’s still noticeable. That’s not to say wind noise with the top up is so bad as to be a nuisance, but that would be a reason to get the RF.

The real kicker? The RF I drove was stickered at $34k. The miata is nice, but $34,000?! Hard pass. The soft boi was $30k, but with 5k in rebates so asking was $25k. For a new M iata that actually feels reasonable, but it’s more than I’d want to pay for a car like this now.

The ND isn’t faultless. It’s the wrong side of impractical. I haven’t been in an NC since last November, but I seem to recall it had map pockets and cup holders in each door as well as a typical glove box and a cubby between the seats. It’s a small car, but at least has enough storage inside that it’s live able. The ND? Nothing on the doors, the infamous removable cup holders are fine but block the small cubby which also houses the manuals (comically, they don’t even fit), there’s no traditional glove box, and the center console can hold a single BIC pen maybe?

I have an iPhone 8+ that tends to fall out of my pocket in cars, so I typically take it out and put it somewhere. The ND was a challenge - no cup holder, no door pocket, no glove box, no center console. It might have fit in the cubby, but eventually I figured out there’s a little gap in the ‘coin tray’ in front of the shifter for it that fits BARELY. Oh, and the RF doesn’t have that gap because it’s where the roof control is.

All in all I quite like the ND, but if I am replacing my Mustang with a Miata I think I'm leaning NC for added practicality and value. Now I just need to find one to drive...

DISCUSSION (20)

boxrocket > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 10:08

If you go NC, PRHT or “soft-boy ”?

marshknute > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 10:41

Having owned both an NA Miata with a soft top and a Corvette with a targa top, you should definitely go with the ragtop.

The targa is just enough hassle that I don’t feel like putting the top down most times. In the Miata, I had the top down pretty much every single time. The lack of time penalty to operate the top makes all the difference.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 11:54

or just take 10k and find a super clean NB then take the 15k and go to Flyin Miata and make it crazy fast

Out, but with a W - has found the answer > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 11:55

Do the US MX-5s have a different “glovebox” between the seats, or different manuals? Mine fits the manuals, parking disc, hi-vis jacket, compact tripod for my phone, sunglasses, wallet, ... without an issue. (H aven’t actually been able to fill it completely)

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 12:08

I consider the RF to be an electronic targa rather than a “hardtop convertible”. As far as practicality, yeah, the ND is an absolute joke. Smallest trunk of any generation and you don’t even get a spare tire? No thanks.

I haven’t driven an NC so my basis of comparison is NA6, NA8, and NB2 but between them the NB2 has by far the largest drunk, NA6 has the roomiest interior, and the ND didn’t really seem to handle all that better than my NB nor did it seem much faster though it did feel a lot quicker when you wind it out.

They did a great job of making the ND feel faster than it is but if the NC does truly sit somewhere between the NB and ND it’s probably ideal. I’d be very interested to see how quiet a PRHT NC is.

Jayhawk Jake > Out, but with a W - has found the answer
08/26/2018 at 13:19

I didn’t look that closely. I opened it up and the manuals were sitting on the bottom, and looked a bit smushed.

Jayhawk Jake > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
08/26/2018 at 13:22

I wish I had paid more attention to the NC I had for two days in Hawaii. Since I wasn’t shopping for a M iata at the time I didn’t look at anything critically. I don’t remember how loud it was with the top up.

I would actually say the ND is pretty close to the NA from a roominess standpoint. It was me and like a 6' 2" sales person and I didnt feel like we were cramped.

From what I recall driving NBs the ND feels perkier at least. It’s not necessarily that much faster feeling but it’s smooth and pulls well through gears. The NC has more power and is physically larger, so you’d think it’d slot well between the two

Jayhawk Jake > marshknute
08/26/2018 at 13:25

A targa in a corvette makes sense to me, a power targa in a miata kinda feels like the wrong sort of compromise. It’s nice to have the option on a corvette, and the penalty for it being “an option” is it’s a little more work. The miata is traditionally a convertible, and even with the way it looks the rear glass stows on the RF so it isn’t really a targa even though it functions like one. The benefit is no penalty to trunk space, but the downside is from the rear it isn’t a hatch like a corvette, it’s just a hardtop miata with some extra angle pieces.

Jayhawk Jake > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
08/26/2018 at 13:27

Perhaps. It’s not really my taste though. I’m not a huge fan of NBs as it is, and my goal is to save money while still having a car I can competitively autocross. Yes, I could sell my Mustang and get a nice NB and make it fast, but I don't really want to go that old for my daily nor do I want to modify it so heavily from the get go.

Jayhawk Jake > boxrocket
08/26/2018 at 13:29

Not sure if I’m honest. The hardtop looks better and seems like it would make for a better daily, but without driving some on the street again I’m not sure it’s worth whatever extra cost or inconvenience.

There’s also a consideration that in my mind the miata becomes a ‘forever’ car, in the sense that I would eventually own it outright and use it as an affordable track toy. Putting a proper rollbar in can't really be done with a hardtop remaining functional, so a soft top may be a better long term choice.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 13:34

The ND is impressively roomy inside for how much safety stuff they have to cram in but the auxiliary storage and trunk is absolutely laughable.

Regardless of what Miata I get I’d 100% spring for whatever premium audio they had at the time to drown out the wind noise because regardless of hard top/soft top/power retractable turtle shell I’d need something to drown the wind noise out but then again I’m someone who cares very very little for the novelty of a convertible.

I’d love to drive an ND2 to see what a Miata that actually accelerates is like.

Out, but with a W - has found the answer > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 14:55

RF or ST? Apparently, the RF’s cubby is smaller than the soft top’s, so that could explain it. (And yet another reason to get the soft top!)

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Jayhawk Jake
08/26/2018 at 16:54

Sounds like you dont like fun :)

Just the NCs are the most comfy and old guy for Miatas so keep that in mind

Jayhawk Jake > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
08/27/2018 at 09:58

Nothing some coilovers and sticky tires can’t fix.

Jayhawk Jake > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
08/27/2018 at 09:59

Yeah, I’m definitely going back when the 19's show up to see how the power feels. Since the ND already feels pretty quick it should be proper fast with 30 more HP

Jayhawk Jake > Out, but with a W - has found the answer
08/27/2018 at 09:59

RF, I guess I didn’t look at the cubby in the soft top

t0ast > Jayhawk Jake
08/27/2018 at 11:34

If I could go back and change my NC purchase, it’d be to go for a soft top + removable hardtop... and probably a color other than black. The PRHT has been fantastic for daily duties, but as soon as I made the jump into motorsports, the lack of rollbar compatibility very quickly became the writing on the wall for its lo nger-term prospects.

I’d have liked to eventually improve it further with a 2.5L swap and forced induction , but without being able to feasibly let that stretch its legs on a track, it just made more sense to move on to another vehicle. I’ll probably be selling it in the spring of next year, but if you happen to be in KC or do any autocross in Topeka before then and would be interested in checking out the car , feel free to email me at my name here + 217@gmail.com.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Jayhawk Jake
08/27/2018 at 12:04

My grandpa in law is ordering a red-with-black-top 2019 as soon as they’re available. Right now only they’re only taking orders for the RF, he says. Right now he’s driving a 2006 Club with a spun bearing because he accidentally ran it out of oil (sound familiar?) babying it around until he can get an ND . This will be his 6th Miata, while a red E46 M3 6MT with 40k miles does duty as a winter daily.

Jayhawk Jake > t0ast
08/27/2018 at 14:34

Thanks for the input. I’m probably looking at spring of next year, so I may be in touch.

Jayhawk Jake > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
08/27/2018 at 14:36

I actually don’t think Mazda has even confirmed there will be a soft top for 2019, though it would be surprising if there wasn’t.